Searcher Seismic yesterday announced it has started the pre-stack depth migration reprocessing of about 1668sq.km of 3D seismic data in the Carnarvon Basin with CGG.

 

The project comprises broadband PSDM reprocessing of the Western portion of the existing Foxhound 3D Seismic Survey, acquired by Searcher and CGG, and includes coverage to the 2016 Australian Acreage Release.

 

The survey is split into two portions: the Western cube which lies north-east and on trend to the Chandon, Martell and Io/Jansz fields; and the Eastern portion which lies north-north-east and on trend to the Pluto and Wheatstone fields. 

 

"Originally acquired in 2009, the Foxhound 3D survey faced many challenging geophysical issues from a rugose seabed, a highly channelised Tertiary section and deep Triassic reefs," Searcher's geoscience manager Joshua Thorp said. 

 

"Improving the phase control, particularly at the low end, and using an integrated geoscience approach to create a high resolution velocity model will enhance the imaging in the Jurassic and Triassic plays.

 

"As we've seen from our nearby Drop Bear Ultracube data, this will allow exploration teams to move beyond AVO [amplitude versus offset] analysis and implement cutting edge [quantitative interpretation] techniques in this highly prolific basin."

 

Searcher's work puts some muscle behind Chevron Australia general manager, asset development Gerry Flaherty's call at the Society of Petroleum Engineers' Asia Pacific Oil & Gas Conference in Perth last October that there was a need to push seismic technology to see deeper images more clearly and reduce risk in the basin.

 

"Our regional work indicates the basin is not fully explored," he told delegates, adding that Chevron had defined 30-40 more leads and prospects in the basin, which the US Geological Survey estimates still holds 127 trillion cubic feet worth of gas discoveries.

 

He said new seismic acquisition and processing technology had boosted the ability to image deeper where there are a lot of sands and potential traps.

 

"Compared to the US Gulf Coast and the UK there is a long exploration runway, with a lot of plays below existing 12,000ft window that we have yet to discover," he said. 

 

Geoscience Australia has a cumulative estimate of 118Tcf that has been discovered so far in the basin.

 

Chandon-1 was discovered in 2006 by Chevron to the west of the Greater Gorgon development area, while Woodside Petroleum made the Martell-1 gas discovery in 2009 in a JV with Hess about 100km north-west of the Pluto field.